City Hall power struggle in Encinitas

Encinitas Councilmember Lisa Shaffer is asking her colleagues to reconsider a December agreement that had political opposites Teresa Barth and Kristin Gaspar splitting the mayor’s post this year, with Barth serving through June and Gaspar serving in the largely ceremonial position for the second half of 2014.

The agreement was reached after Barth and Gaspar said they hadn’t decided whether to run for mayor in November – when a new city law will for the first time make the post an elected one. The City Council also voted to have Councilmember Tony Kranz serve as deputy mayor in the latter half of 2014.